Ford reported a jump in third-quarter profits Thursday on lower tax expenses as strong US sales of pickups and SUVs lifted results in North America.

Net income for the quarter ending September 30 was $1.6 billion, up 63.4 percent from the year-ago period.

Revenues rose 1.4 percent to $36.5 billion.

Ford's popular F-Series pickup truck scored a 14 percent gain in US sales compared with the year-ago quarter, while SUVs rose four percent.

Pre-tax profits in North America were higher as Ford pointed to higher transaction prices and lower incentives compared with the industry as a whole. 

Pre-tax earnings improved in South America, Middle East and Africa and Asia Pacific, but dropped compared with Europe, where results suffered due to Brexit.  

Ford in May tapped Jim Hackett as chief executive in a shakeup spurred by questions over its direction and languishing share price. Hackett, in a presentation to Wall Street earlier this month, emphasized cost-cutting and investments in autonomous and electric vehicles.

"This quarter demonstrates that our team's focus on fitness is showing early promise," Hackett said in Thursday's news release. 

"But we also know that we must accelerate that progress in the near term, while taking the necessary steps to fundamentally redesign our business operations to be more fit for the long term."

Ford shares rose 1.9 percent to $12.27 in pre-market trading.